Balanced internal-combustion motor.



E. vA Flolm. BALANCED INTERNAL COMBUSTON MOTOR.

APPLICATION F|LED,Nov.15. 191|. I I

' Patented Aug. 10, 1915.

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APPLICATION FILED NOV.15| 1911.

j 'Patented Aug. 10.1915.4

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.APPLICATION H11-:D Nov.15,1911. 193149,433. PatentedAug. 10,1915.

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UNITED s'raTns TATENT saisies.

EUGENE A. FORD, 'OF UXBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

BALANCED INTERNAL-COMUSTION MOTOR.

. working chambers or cylinders of the engine. 4

More particularly the linvention relates 'to that class of internal combustion motors in which the fuel is injected into a volume of air already compressed in the combustion chamber and'is there burned, instead of being mixed with air before compression, although in some of its aspects the invention is not limited to this particular type or class of internal, combustion motors. The lobjects of the invention are principally the following F irst, toprovide a motor which is perfectly balanced, not only mechanically as' regards the reciprocating parts, but also as to the forces other than inertia acting upon these parts; second, to provide a means by which only the resultant representing the excess of power delivered in the working strokey over that ab sorbed in the compression stroke, is delivered tothe shaft, or, in other words, to provide for relieving the shaft of the necessity of transmitting and applying power for the compressionstroke; third, to provide for relieving the engine frame or casing of end thrust reactions, and thereby eliminating vibration; fourth, to provide an engine in which the shaft is perpendicular to Vthe cylinders, with means for applying equal powers on each semi-revolution in opposite directions at the same time; fifth, to providea motor having two pistons moving toward and from vone anotherin the same working chamber, with means foi-'conlining the combustion of the fuel to the central part of the chamber.

The foregoing and other objects are secured in *an engine constructed as illustrated in the accompanying' drawings, and described in the following specification, which engine is here shown to illustrate one of the many possible forms or designs of engine in which the ideas constituting this invention maybe embodied.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' a crank Patented A ug. 10, 1915.

' Application filed November 15, 1911. Serial N o. 660,475.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure'l representsa side elevation of the engine rel ferred to. Fig. 2 is a` vertical section. Fig. 3 1s a plan view ofthe engine. Fig. l representls a cross section on line -l-l of Fig. 2. F 1g. 5.1epi'esents a cross-section on line of Fig. 2. Fig. .6 is a detailed sectional view somewhat diagrammatic in character of the fuel injecting means by which the speed of the motor is controlled.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

The preferred engine unit consists of four pistons working either in two cylinders arranged side by side, or in a single cylinder. In the present case the twc cylinder unit is illustrated. Here l() and 11 represent the two cylinders, in the lirst of which are contained the pistons 12, 13, and in the second the'pistons 14, 15. The pist'onsin each c vlinder are designed to move simultaneously and oppositely, alternately approaching and receding from one another. Relatively opposite pistons in the respective cylinders are connected together, and also connected with the engine shaft so as to act in proper phase. One of the connections is shown in Fig. 2, being the one which connects the piston 12 in cylinder 10 with piston 15' in cylinder 11.

This connection is conveniently a rod 1G, which has secured to one end an arm 17, also secured to the piston 19. by a bolt 18, and at the other end a similar arm 19 secured to the piston 15 b va bolt Q0. The rod 16 carries a wrist pin Q1 which is joined to 22 on theengine shaft 23 by a connecti-ng rod or pitman Q4, shown in eleva# tion in Fig. 1. An exactly similar rod is'connected to the piston 11 by an arm 26, to the piston 13 b v an arm 27, and to a crank 2S on the engine shaft by a connecting rod .29 and wrist pin 3U. rfhe cranks 22 and 2S extend oppositely from the shaft and are placed as near together as the construction of the engine will permit. In the illustrations here given the distance between the cranks is slightly greater than the diameter of the cylinder, but it maybe made less. The rods 16 and 25 travel longitudinally through guidesQ between the cylinders,

and the arms 17, 19, QG and Q7 pass through cn c,

ment of the means for connecting the several pistons together and to the shaft, in many ways, and. accordingly l do not limit my invention to the particular arrangement shown.

It will be understood that as a result of the connections described, pistons l2 and 15 travel in unison and pistons 13 and 14. also travel in unison, but oppositely to the other two pistons. Also that there are two moving pistons in each cylinder, or .in other words that both end ualls oit each cylinder wholly to a two-cycle engine, for the main principles of the invention are applicable to four-cycle engines as well. As, however, I consider' that the two-cycle engine is preterable .for many reasons to the four-cycle engine, l have chosen to employ the two- Cycle type in working out the invention. l have provided air inlets in the ends of the cylinders for admitting fresh charges of air. These are controlled by valves 33 illustrat-ed conventionally' in Fic. 2, arranged to open inwardly and controlled by springs 3st. Thus suction spaces are provided at the ends of each cylinder, which spaces are kept distinct from the ycombustion chambers by means of the pistons and the cylinder 'alls, and the suction chambers of the two cylinders are also made strictly separate. A conduit connects the two suction spaces of the cylinder l0, and a similar conduit 3G in like manner connects the suction chambers of the cylinder ll. These conduits are connected with their respective cylinders by short connecting passages 37 and 3S. from which ports 3f) and 40 open into the combustion chambers, such ports being uncovered by the pistons when at the end of their working stroke. Exhaust ports 41 and 42 for the two cylinders are at the respectively opposite ends of the combustion chambers, and are controlled by the pistons lf2 and ll respectively. They open into conduits lll and ll. 'which are of'greater width than and surround the conduits i and 236 respectively. Outlets for the exhaust conduits are shown at lf and lo. whcni-il thc exhaust. elvcess may pass lo theatmosphere or to a suitable mnlllor. The transfer conduits and exhaust conduits may of,coursc ineens@ be arranged in any convenient manner other than that shown, it desired, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

lt will be noted that by making both end walls of the combustion chamber movable,

it is possible to locate the inlet and cxhau.,: ports at opposite ends of the combustion chamber, and thereby secure a better scavenging etl'ect than is possible in the usual cmistruction of two-cycle engine, where the inlet and exhaust ports cannot be farther separated than the amount of the diameter of the cylinder. and in which there is a considerable space toward the head end of the cylinder which is only imperfectly cleared of exhaust gases.

ln the engine illustrated, which is of the Diesel type, only ail' is drawn past 'the inlet valves 33. The fuel is separately injected through inlets all, located in the sides of the cylinders at the longitudinal.Fcenters thereof, so that the injected fuel may pass into the cylinders between the pistons when the latter are nearest together. ln order to produce an agitation of the air, insuringthorough combustion of the fuel and distribution of heat, and also to confine 'the zone of most intense combustion to the axis of the cylinder and away from the cylinder walls .l niount upon each piston a wall or plate 8 separated from the end of the. pis-- ton by a space 4f) and from the cylinder walls by 'an annular space 50 around its edges. Posts Sl'or equivalent means support. the plate lo in proper relation to the piston. These plates are so located that they approach closely together at the end ol' the compression stroke, but are separated suiliciently to permit the jet of fuel forced in through the inlet to enter between them. (f course at the moment of injection the spaces between and surrounding the plates are full of air at great pressure and high temlierature, the teml'ierature being usually high enough to ignite the fuel.' )es soon as the pistons move apart, the air rushes from the spaces di) around the edges of the plates S on all sides thereof. The air thus passing on the side nearest the inlet draws the fuel` which is injected in a finely divided condition, toward the center of the cylinder, where it meets the air passing around other points of the plates. These currl ts of air thus meeting produce agitation. causing sufficient fresh air to mingle with the fuel for tl c purpose of completing the combustlon thereof. As long as the separating movement of the pistons conlio tinues,and as the pressure in the combustion chamber diminis'ehcs. the air continues to tlow from the .spaces ill around the plates next to the cylinder walls, keeping the zone of combustion away from the walls and preventing deposit on the latter of soot'y and tar; constituents ot the fuel. l prefer to stead of fresh air alone.

secure ignition of the fuel by compressing the air to such a degree that thel temperature -thereof is above the degree at which com- -fuel made before admission to the cylinder,

and in such case a carbureter will be connected to the fresh air inlets so a's to supply a mixture of air and the vaporized fuel in- The stroke is designed'for each engine to secure the desired effect,'whcther this is to obtain a ternperature. high enough for ignition, or to compress an explosive mixture toa degree less than that at which ignition occurs..

The engine constructedsubstantially as describedhas many important advantages. In the lirst place the moving parts are connected together in such a way that two equal masses are formed which move exactly oppositely to one another with the same accelerati'ons, and thus the engine is mechanically balanced. In the second place the thrust and reaction caused in either cylinder by combustion of a charge are taken up by oppositely movingpistons and both applied to the shaft. Thus neither is endwise pressure applied to the engine frame, nor is any unbalanced pressure applied to the shaft. They only stresses absorbed in the engine frame are those normal to the cylinder walls, which, of course, are balanced. There is no tendency to vibration, therefore, and it is not necessary to provide strong or massive bed plates or foundations for the engine,

even when the same is designed to develop y great power. Finally the power necessary to give the pistons their compression stroke is furnished directly by the connected pis- 'tons making the working stroke, and 'is not transmitted first from the working piston to the shaft and thence to the compressing piston. Instead, so much of the power of the working piston as is required to actuate the compressing piston is taken by the rods 1G and 25, and only the difference between the pressure of the workingstroke and the resistance of the compression is delivered to the shaft. Thus the shaft is required only to carry the effective power of the engine and is not required to assist in the internal transfers of force within the engine itself. Thereby the shaft may be made lighter than for engines of the ordinary type developing the same power.

It will be seen that the engine is compact, that it may be light in construction, that it is not necessary to use excessive pains in securing it in place, and that there is very little side thrust and therefore little friction in the main bearing. I The engine as above described represents the preferred unit for engines working on the two-stroke cvcle, but the improvements constituting the invention may be applied in other units and to engines of different cycle. lt is possible to control the speed of the engine and keep it somewhere nearly constant by an automatic inlet valve such as is shown in Fig. G. In this figure there is dia grainina'tically indicated a fuel reservoir at 55, a fuel pump at 56 and a cam at 57, the latter being on a shaft 5S which is driven by the engine shaft 23, or may be the engine shaft itself. conduit 59 runs fromvthe pump to thel Chamis-into of the inlet valve, and a branch t' 1opins into this conduit from the fuel reservoir. .\n outwardly opening check valve G2 -is located at the inletI of the branch 61. The fuel inlet 47 opens from the valve chamber into the cylinder and is controlled by a valve 63. The latter is formed as a part of, or connected to, a piston Gl which fits in` the chamber 60 and is pressed toward the cylinder by a spring 65. A passage 66 is formed through the valve and piston, making free communication between the combustion chamber and the space latter chamber the fuel acts on the piston 64C,

moving it against the pressure of spring 65 and opening the valve 63. lVhen the pump plunger again-withdraws, due to the cam offset GT having passed the roll 68, the fuel Hows back out of the chamber (30 and the valve 63 closes under the' influence of the spring.- The valve is so formed that even when fully opened the inlet is still very restricted, so restricted that the full charge of the pump is not able to pass through it in the time required by the offset GT to pass the i-oll GS even when the engine runs at the slowest possible speed. Consequently', as the fuel supplied by the pump is greater in volume than can be passed through the inlet, the amount injected into the c vliiider varies with the speed of the engine, being greater when the speed is low, and less .when high.- In this way an automatic check is given to 'development of excessive speed, and the envalve chamber, and having an-arm 70 for regulation. This arm may be operated either by hand or by any sort of engine goveriior to adjnst the tension of the spring (55 and thereby canse more or less fuel to enter the cylinder during a anitof time,

lvlhen the abutment permanently adjusted the inlet. valre'is set for generally higher or lower speed, and when controlled by a gov erinor the speed .may be kept constant.

l have described the .machine element to le which rotation is imparted by the pistons as certain of the following' claims to be understood generically and interpreted as ineluding any rotating or revolving element capable of being` given rotary in oreniei'it by reciinocating` parts through any eonnecting driving means whatever.

l. ln an internal combustion engine, the con'ibination of an engine cylinder, a, pair of pistons therein movable oppositely and sise n'niltaneously therein, inwardly openingen' inlet valves located in the ends of said cylinder, an air transfer passage from the ends of said cylinder 'to the combustion space thereof, a, fnel inlet. supply between the pistons, and partitions carried by the pistons forming with the pistons storage spaces for the compressed air charge to be delivered. in annular strean'is into the combustion space -between the pistons on the working stroke 40 and thereby conline the zone of most intense combustion to the lcenter of the engine cylinder. a i

In an internal combustion engine, the con'ibination of an engine cylinder having;`

4o an air inlet at one end and an exhaust ontlet at the opi'iosite, end, a pair of pistons movable oppositely and simultaneously in said cylinder and controlling said 'inlet and outlet7 in\\ardl v openiii` air inletvalves located in the ends of said cylinder, an air transfer passage from the ends of said cylinder to the combustion space thereof, a fuel inlet supply'betwecn the pistons, and partitions carried by the pistons forming with the pistons storage spaces for the com-- pressed air charge to be delivered in annular streams into the combustion space between the pistons on the Working stroke and thereby confine the Zone of most intense c0inbnstion to the center of the cylinder.

3. An internal combustion inotor including a combustion chamber, movable inembers forming the opposite end walls of such eonibustioi'i chamber and adapted to move toward and from one another, means for admitting,Y fuel and air to the chamber between such end walls, said moving end Walls having` storage chambers forA reception of the compressed air charge and means adapted to deliver the said charge in annular streams into the combustion space between the pistons on the working stroke and the 1, by cenline the zone cf intense combustion to the center of the engine cylinder.

ln an internal Combustion motor,- a combustion chamber in which air conpressed, means for injectingfuel into the chamber, a circular in'iperforate partition of .less diameter than said chamber supported by oe end of said chamber and forming a storage space for the compressed air charge to be delivered in an annular stream into the combustion space on the Working stroke and thereby confine the zone of intense combnstion to the center of the coinbastion chamber.

ln an internal combustion inotor, a con'ibnstion chamber in which air is cornpressed, means for injecting fuel intothe chamber, a piston working in said chamber and having an iniperforate plate fast thereto and separated from the face of the piston and from the sides of the chamber and forming with the piston a storage space for the compressed air charge to be delivered in an annular stream into the combustion space on the waiting stroke and thereby confine ythe zone of intense combustion to the center of the combustion chamber.

1n testimony whereof l have affixed my sigi'iatnre, 1n presence of two witnesses.V

EUGENE A. FORD.

lfVitnesses:

Fonnns'x: R. RoULsToNn, n'i'lit'n ll. BROWN.

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